Friday, September 17, 2010

For those who are paying attention, it is becoming clearer by the day that the mess we’re in can only be solved by a return to our founding principles. Removing the foundation from an edifice, no matter how high or how wide the edifice, will always result in its destruction. Since the days of Woodrow Wilson and perhaps before, America has raised generations of atheistic, agnostic, narcissistic, hedonistic, pampered infants. Now we are facing the alumni of the Karl Marx/Benjamin Spock school of ideology.

Unfortunately, with growing frequency, the very foundations for which our forefathers bled and died are crumbling in a heap of liberal, social, watered-down half-truths. The emergent church, the World Council of Churches, with its Communist underpinning, Rick Warren with his heretical teaching, and prosperity preachers who bask in the glow of their own ill-gotten gains, all have contributed to a "gospel" that bears no resemblance at all to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

At first blush, I agreed with nearly all of what the following article had to say. Then I re-read it through the prism of today’s feel-good, Kumbaya church, and highlighted what I consider to be well worth considering:

"TAKING AMERICA BACK 2010

Pastors taken to task for political apathy'What we have in America is a preacher problem'

MIAMI – America has gone 'from one nation under God to a nation at war with God,' said Rick Scarborough, president of Vision America, at WND's 'Taking America Back Conference.' And who's to blame?

According to a pair of speakers at the Miami confab, one of most significant answers is also one the most uncomfortable for Christians.

'As the church goes, so goes the nation; as the pastor goes, so goes the church.' Scarborough said, 'What we have in America is a preacher problem.'

Scarborough, himself a former Southern Baptist minister, told the audience his story of recognizing the need for pastors to snap out of political complacency and get involved in the cultural war for the soul of the nation.

He had attended a sexual education presentation at his daughter's high school in the 1990s, only to discover a message of sexual license and perversity that shocked him. When he brought a transcript of the presentation to his church, the building was filled with people equally stunned.

Shortly thereafter, Scarborough explained at 'Taking America Back,' he began to free his congregation from excessive church responsibilities to take up civic duties. Members of his church were elected to the school board and city council and began to reassert Christian values in the public arena.

"We just got the people in the churches to stand up and do what they ought to be doing," Scarborough said.

The story is at the heart of his founding of Vision America, but he warns that the people will not rise up and get involved unless the pastors lose their fear and apathy toward political involvement.

Doug Giles, radio host and father of the undercover video journalist Hannah Giles, brought the same challenge, but with a much sharper tone.

'Somebody who waffles, quiet as a church mouse,' Giles said, 'that cat is about as useless as a pitch pipe to Yoko Ono.'

Giles further charged, referring to the heated politics surrounding the tea party movement and the 2010 election, 'If a pastor is not part of this crucial societal throwdown … this pastor is Dr. Evil and part of the problem.'

He warned pastors against thinking of their duties as primarily pious and spiritual: 'Your religious liberties are disappearing like a pack of smokes at an AA clinic.'

He warned pastors not to fear losing their 501(c)3 tax-exempt status: 'You're going to compromise the gospel because you don't want to pay taxes on hot dogs? Wow."'

Pulling no punches, Giles also slammed big-church pastors who are afraid speaking out on issues of liberty and morality for fear of losing their lucrative positions: 'Christendom has its shares of money-loving hookers … bowing to cash instead of convictions.'

'Saul Alinsky loves those pastors who don't get involved politically,' Giles concluded, 'and so does the guy written about in the dedication to his book ['Rules for Radicals']. Who was that again? Oh yeah, Lucifer.'

Scarborough argued that the culture wars won't be won unless both pastors and pew-sitters are willing to roll their sleeves up and get their hands dirty in the fight:

'The problem with us Christians today is that we're so afraid of offending our little ears that we've dug holes and buried our heads in them,' he said. 'The holes that the 'gays' came out of, the church went in, and it's not going to change until the church comes out.'

He wrapped up his speech with a challenge:

'If the church doesn't awaken now, if the tea party and everybody involved doesn't understand that God is at the heart of it all, then we lose,' he said.

The crowd then erupted in standing ovation with his final words, "It's now or never. It's time for the church to stand.'"

Drew Zahn makes some excellent points, and who am I to argue with a real writer? But I am not here to challenge his ability or his wisdom. I am simply coming at the matter from a different perspective. Consider this: today’s emergent church couldn’t possibly be any more involved in politics than it already is. As a tool of the far left, or Satan, if you will, it has been inexorably dragging Christians and non-Christians alike down the path to perdition. I believe this article speaks not to preachers as a whole, but to independent, fundamental, evangelical preachers who still preach the whole Gospel of Christ. Sadly, they’re becoming fewer and farther between in our world of hope and change.

Sunday, September 12, 2010

He said it again. It is probably the only Bible passage he knows, and he doesn’t know it all that well. Or maybe he does. I heard a brief clip on the radio yesterday. It was part of his radio address, the usual canned bleeding heart drivel punctuated it with, “On this day, we also honor those who died so that others might live: the firefighters and first responders who climbed the stairs of two burning towers; the passengers who stormed a cockpit; and the men and women who have, in the years since, borne the uniform of this country and given their lives so that our children could grow up in a safer world. In acts of courage and decency, they defended a simple precept: I am my brother's keeper; I am my sister's keeper.” (Emphasis mine)

How many times has a variation of this come out of his mouth in the last three years or so? Not quite as many as "Let me be clear." What comes after trillion?

Genesis 4:9 is probably one of the most misunderstood verses in the Bible. After Cain killed his brother, the Lord asked him the whereabouts of Abel. Cain answered, “I know not. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

Our president has taken this and run with it. In his drive to dictate every aspect of our lives from womb to tomb, perhaps this is exactly what he does mean: Orwellian control.

I always think of a zookeeper when I hear the word keeper. A zookeeper certainly has to have complete control over his charges: lions, tigers and bears. Not to mention reptiles, monkeys and rhinos. But maybe that’s just me. However, Bill Wink of An Inconvenient Blog fame had this to say about the phrase in 2008—way before the election:

“My Brother’s Keeper

I am not my brother’s keeper

And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?

So how can I make this statement: I am not my brother’s keeper, a statement that goes against the preaching of mortal men?

When GOD inquired of Cain regarding the whereabouts of his brother Able in Genesis 4:9 The LORD GOD did not answer Cain directly when he asked: Am I my brother's keeper? God did not say yes you are or, no you are not.

So just what did GOD say?

HE said: What hast thou done? The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto ME from the ground.

And from that many interpret an answer rather than heeding GOD’s response which in the first part was a question not an answer. However, in the second part of the phrase, if there is an answer, it is the Sixth Commandment of the Decalogue that GOD set down for man: “Thou shalt not kill”. Then paraphrasing; What hast thou done? Thou shalt not kill they brother whose blood crieth unto ME from the ground.

An ulterior motive – control

It seems though, that in religion and for other convenient purposes, interpretation is a matter of preconceived answers to the questions.

Many want the answer to the question; “Am I my brother’s keeper?” to be yes; so in the scriptures they find the LORD’s answer affirms their preconceived yes.

I, on the other hand, do not. I do not because I do not wish to control you and I don’t accept that GOD wants me to control you either.

Keeper

The word “keeper” simply by definition allows for a lot of latitude to those who wish to be your “keeper” or by definition protector, custodian or guardian.

Will I defend or protect or help my sibling, child, wife, mother, father, relative or friend? To the extent they need me, yes, of course.

I will be there for you when you need me but I will not be your “keeper” as others want to be.

How this applies to the subverting of America

Collectivists (socialists) pass laws making me responsible for you.

Being someone’s “keeper” is a form of collectivism. Communitarians want to be your “keeper”. Socialists want to be your “keeper”. Liberals want to be your “keeper”. Only individualists want you to be responsible for you and for you to allow others the same in return.

Individualists will not pass laws requiring you to wear your seat belt, however, they will tell you what could happen to you if you don’t. But the actual hooking-up of the seat belt is your responsibility. Individualists will not pass laws requiring you to wear your safety helmet if you are an adult. Individualists will not pass laws telling you what to eat. Individualists will protect your individual rights. But those who subscribe to the philosophy of being their brother’s keeper will address all of these issues and make them a law and punish you like a child if you don’t abide.

The Ten Commandments

When I read the story of Moses and the Ten Commandments the Commandments were not directed at only a select few who were supposed to collectively enforce the Will of GOD on the remaining Israelites. But rather the Commandments were set down as Divine Guidance for each and every individual.

So just where in the Ten Commandments does it tell me I must be my brother’ keeper? No where. But there is a Commandment that tells us to let our brother live in peace.

The last Commandment states:

'Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, not his manservant, not his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor's.' Ex. 20:17.

So what is 'any thing that is thy neighbor’s'? It is the rest of his property of course and his property goes beyond anything in a physical sense. His property includes those unalienable rights bestowed on him by his CREATOR and that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Here are two direct quotes from somebody’s president in an interview on the NBC Nightly News.

“We’ve got a lot more work to do,” he said. “But the fact is because of the sturdiness and swiftness of the response, there’s a lot less oil hitting these shores and these beaches than anybody would have anticipated given the volume that was coming out of the BP oil well.” (Emphasis mine)

How out of touch with reality can he possibly get? Is there one person with half a brain out here who can believe even one word that comes out of his mouth? Oh yes, Robert Gibbs. No, come to think of it, Gibbs doesn’t have half a brain.

And this is a sort of devil’s advocate, apologetic article by Alex Wagner. See paragraph 3 and then see if you can find even one similar excuse for Bush’s response to Katrina. On second thought, don’t bother.

This next quote made me want to hurt someone. But I went out and pruned my roses instead, telling myself to consider the source:

“It’s not surprising that somebody like a Mr. Beck is able to stir up a certain portion of the country. That's been true throughout our history,” he said. But “what I’m focused on is making sure that the decisions we’re making now are going to be be not good for the nightly news, not good even necessarily for the next election, but are good for the next generation.” (Emphasis mine)

Barack Obama cares nothing for the United States of America. We the People have been ignored, ridiculed, snubbed, pushed aside, and lied to for as long as this uppity, arrogant puke has been wearing a suit. HE MUST BE STOPPED. Pray with me. Pray with your friends, your neighbors, your coworkers, your children, your parents. Pray for our republic and for the November election. Pray that the God who has been ignored, ridiculed, snubbed, pushed aside and lied to will hear “this portion of the country” and turn things around. I very much fear that if our cup of iniquity is indeed full, and God doesn’t hear—and why should He?—our children and grandchildren may grow up and die under an oppression so heinous, so absolute, that The United States Constitution will be just a footnote in the history books.

Monday, August 23, 2010

Apparently I broken one of the laws of blogging. If I have stepped on anybody's toes, or face, or neck, I apologize from the bottom of my hard little heart. Here is my chastisement and my response for those of you who don't keep up with the handful of comments to my posts:

One of the Moons said...(Name omitted)Yes, I read every comment. I'm not sure what your problem is today. Perhaps you're having a bad hair day. If so, I can relate. If I don't respond to every comment left on my blog it's not because I'm indifferent. Comments are the lifeblood of blogs and I apperciate every single one of them.

I happens that I have three blogs that I am challenged to keep up with and, due to work, trying to get through the summer with no rain, getting up every morning and having to face what is going in Washington, wondering what the next outrage will be, and trying to be more involved in church, seeing my husband through decision making regarding his prostate cancer, and a thousnad other things that make up my day (and no doubt everyone's day, with variations) I don't always keep up the way I should. But please know this: I'm every bit as concerned as the next blogger about what is happening to America. Maybe I'm not running my blog the way others would have me do. I'll try to respond to the comments more often. I am assuming your comment was loving criticism, since we're all in this together. Or, maybe it was roundabout way of telling me that I don't quite measure up to the other million or so bloggers.

I once told Old NFO that my traffic is about on a par with my shoe size. It remains so now. But that doesn't prevent me from researching when I should be sleeping, from signing petitions, handing out literature, and praying for a cure of the cancer that is spreading like wildfire across this great land of ours, and continuing to try to speak the truth on Granny with a Pitchfork.I'm sorry you don't want to associate with me anymore. May God go with you.LoveGrannyAugust 23, 2010 11:04 AM"

I realize I don't always get the comments posted in timely manner and you have all been very patient with me.
If I am abusing any other area of protocol please let me know and I will try to remedy it before I get gutshot again. I thought we were all in this together.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

“Muslim American clerics have spoken out against terror and extremism, reaffirming that Islam teaches that one must save human life, not take it.” President Obama in a speech given at the iftar dinner at the White House

No matter how you slice this piece of camel dung, it still means one thing: they are rubbing our noses in it. They can stand around and say the mosque will be a gesture of brotherly love and a symbol of the Group Hug and a reaching out to all people, and more drivel, equally meaningless. The fact is, the presence of a mosque on that sacred ground will say, in our president’s favorite words, “We won.”

I don’t know about you but I remember how I felt on September 11th, 2001. And I’ll be willing to bet you remember down to the smallest detail where you were, what you were doing and how you felt. It’s etched in the minds of all patriots, which, incidentally, do not include all Americans. Alec Baldwin, Timothy Robbins, Michael Moore, Pelosi, Reid and most of congress come to mind. And let’s not forget the Muslim currently desecrating the oval office, when he’s not on vacation. But I’m betting the majority of us made a vow that what happened on that day would never happen again on our soil.

My friends, it is happening. While we have been sleeping, complacent and confident in our security, the enemy has been chipping away at the foundation our forefathers fought and died for. Islam is not “over there” anymore. It is in our towns, in our schools, in our places of business, and in New York City. Are they all bloodthirsty terrorists intent on beheading us at the slightest provocation? No. Are they followers of a religion of violence? Yes.

Here are the first three paragraphs Chapter 7: Islam is a Peaceful Religion, by Timothy W. Dunkin's Ten Myths About Islam:

“From a sociological standpoint, this is perhaps THE most widely propagated myth about Islam. For decades, Islam has put across to Westerners a peaceful, loving front. This false view of Islam has been spread all the more aggressively since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Muslim leaders in the United States and other Western nations had to push their efforts at hiding Islam's true nature into high gear, trying to counterbalance the impact that was made by the sight of Palestinians and other Muslims (some in this very nation) cheering and celebrating the destruction of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Unfortunately, many theologically liberal and compromising people in most of the mainline Christian denominations have gone right along with these attempts at whitewashing Islam's image, either out of blind ignorance or unthinking sympathy for Mohammed's religion. Even in many traditionally conservative Protestant churches, pastors have invited false teachers from Islam to present that religion to their congregants, and the image given is invariably that of a peaceful, loving, tender-hearted faith whose members are absolutely appalled at the violence committed by "a few fringe radicals".

I have personally witnessed this sort of bald-faced lying done in the name of Islam. On November 11, 2001, I attended a panel presentation on the campus of the University of North Carolina, in Chapel Hill, during which the several panel members each had the opportunity to take 15 minutes and give their thoughts on the events and responses to the September 11 attacks. One of the speakers was a Muslim imam from a local mosque in Durham. Naturally, he took twice as much time as was allotted for him, and did not even address the topic of discussion. Instead, he spent 30 minutes ranting and raving about how peaceful and loving Islam was, and how Islam respects people of other religions. This lying deceiver even went so far as to say that he would be morally obligated to stop a person from defacing or vandalizing a Christian church. In short, his entire diatribe was one giant lie, yet much of the (mostly leftist) crowd ate up every word of it like it was gospel truth. This response demonstrated the desperate need for education about Islam in this nation. Not education in Islam, but education about Islam, so that the majority of the population in Western societies who know little to nothing about the religion can learn the truth about it, instead of being fed sugar-coated lies from Islamic leaders and propagandists. People in the West need to know that the image of Islam as a violent, intolerant, wicked religion is in fact true, and growing more so every day.

So, to ask the question frankly: Is Islam peaceful or violent? To answer equally as frankly: It is violent. It is a religion which was born out of violence, propagated through violence, and which is still accustomed to violence even today. This can clearly be seen by examining the teachings and record of Islam. These are the two primary means by which to judge the character of a religion on some question. You look at the established, recognized, plainly understood teachings of that religion from its holy texts, and then you look at the manner and methodology by which those most faithful to that religion carry out their obedience to their belief system. So let us apply this test to the Muslim faith.”

I urge you to read this scholarly work. We all need to educate ourselves about the religion. As Dunkin says, not to educate ourselves in the religion, but about the religion. I include myself when I say we tend to be lazy when it comes to educating ourselves. When I graduated from college I said, “There! I don’t have to do that anymore.” As it turns out, I have learned more in the past nine or ten years, in spite of myself, than I did with all the book learning of my past, including college. But I’ve only scratched the surface. And if we don’t arm ourselves with enough knowledge to overcome the insidious and rapidly encroaching enemy on our doorstep, we are condemning our children and grandchildren to a lifetime of slavery.

If the Muslims really cared about good will and brotherly love they would move the site for the mosque. They don't give a fig about the right hand of fellowship. In fact, their purpose is to pound one more nail into the coffin of peace and liberty. Wake up, America.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

It was 105° on our shady deck today. Cec and I decided there was nothing outdoors that required our attention, so with the exception of his trip to the end of the driveway with the trash and my two trips out with the dogs, it was surf the net, crochet and read. Little Gus has pretty much recovered from his wasp stings. I guess the wasps are as grumpy about the weather as we are. Either that or they resented him sticking his nose in their brand new house under the downspout at the corner of the garage.

It is getting increasingly difficult to read anything at all on the net anymore without wanting to throw something large through a closed window. The ground zero Imam is still going to the Middle East on the American taxpayers’ dime; the president is still bashing Bush; Juan Williams is still sounding like a moron; and the U.S. Mexican border is still a wide open invitation. Brian and Bruce will soon be mincing to the altar in California. Same stuff, different day.

As I was considering all this today I thought of my father, who passed away twelve years ago last month. Dad was a Christian, a small business owner, and a staunch Republican all his life, in an area that was pretty much Democrat. However, in the late innings, I watched a slow and inexorable change. By the time I realized what had happened, it was too late. In all fairness to Dad, after Mom passed away there was very little to distract him. He went to church, which had long since fallen into the “emergent” maelstrom. He was, as millions are, also a captive of the mainstream media. While I enjoyed the company of a conservative, intelligent, patient husband, scores of liberal, self righteous, “educated” well-wishers surrounded poor Dad for the last five years of his life.

As I considered all this, and how much I miss him, I suddenly realized I would not have him back for the world. It would break my heart to have him see the demise of all the values he held so dear. From our socialist president to our immoral congress; from the stimulus to obscene taxation; from the bailouts to abortion; from government takeover of the auto industry and banks to the removal of God from every area of public life; from the rape of the private sector to socialized medicine, the list goes on ad nauseum. I would hate to think of him watching one small business after another go under. I would hate even more to see his life’s savings—which he earned by the sweat of his brow and the work of his hands—disappear overnight.

Now we are nearly to the eve of the midterm election. Have we learned anything? I looked at some poll numbers today. Three quarters of the voters polled believe that our socialist president should stop blaming Bush for everything from the economy to ingrown toenails. However, a large percent of voters think our socialist president is doing a good job. God help us. I thank God my Dad is not around to see this. Do I miss him? Yes. Even after twelve years. I still have the last shopping list he wrote; I have kept all the sympathy cards; I wear his old ratty bathrobe. Do I wish him back? No. I rejoice he is with the Lord and I look with anticipation to reuniting with him and Mom someday. Meanwhile, Cec and I will do all we can to spread the word about the sewage explosion in Washington.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Any fool who says Sharia Law hasn’t already ensconced itself in America has his head firmly implanted where the sun never shines. For those of you who haven’t seen these videos (for whatever reason I can’t imagine) here is what is going on in Dearborn, Michigan. You remember Michigan, home of Detroit, the result of the far left gone amok. Now, I understand that Islamists have every right to exercise their religious beliefs. Look at 9/11. However, apparently that means Christians do not have a right to exercise theirs. Just a year ago I would have bet that Sharia Law would not creep in soon enough to apply to me and my loved ones. Now I am not so sure. And, at the rate it seems to be coming, I see our children and grandchildren not only saddled with staggering taxes, but trying to pay them while wearing burqas and turbans

One of the headlines on my homepage this morning read: Panel Vote Could Clear Way for Ground Zero Mosque. The writers of the article pointed out that the panel was simply voting on whether or not to demolish an old building that has ceased to qualify as a landmark. If it is torn down, the mosque people would have their spot for a center for “moderate” Muslim Voices. Does this stink or what?

Just to prove that Satan never sleeps, while I was doing something else for a couple of hours today the panel voted unanimously to demolish the building. Now the headline says

Daisy Khan, executive director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement said they want to “repair the breach and be at the front and center to start the healing.” Let me tell you something, Ms Khan: The healing is not going to come from a mosque or from Muslim advancement. And there are those of us who remember the horror of 9/11, and have witnessed what has transpired since the vile, bottom feeding, foreign-born minion of Satan slithered his way from the cesspool of Chicago into the oval office. There are those of us who uphold the sanctity and truth of the United States Constitution. We will never give in to this kind of hope and change. Our country diminishes day by day. I only hope the values that we hold so dear do not get swept away in the metastisis of progressivism.